Framing-square.



N0- 637,373. Patentd Nov. 2I,.l899. W. H..&. D. B. CRAWFORD.

FRAMING SQUARE.

* (Application filed Apr. 24, 1899.) (No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l.

THE Nam-us PETERS co. PHOTO-Linda. WASHINGTON a c No. 637,373. Patented Nov. 2!, I899. W. H. 8:. D. B. CRAWFORD.

FRAMING SQUARE.

(Application filed Apr. 24,.1899.)

(" D 2 Sheets8heet 2.

WILLIAM II. ORAWFORD AND DoUeLAs B. CRAWFORD, or GRAYDON, WEST VIRGINIA.

FRAMING-SQUARE.

SIEECIFIQATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 637,373, dated November 21, 1899 Application filed April 24. 1899. Serial N6. 714,225. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that we, WILLIAM H. CRAW- FORD and DOUGLAS B. CRAWFORD, citizens of the United States, residing at Graydon, in the county of Fayette and State of West Virginia, having invented a new and useful Framing-Square, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to framing-squares; and it has for its object to provide a new and useful square of this character primarily designed as an aid in'forming mortises and tenons in carpentry and similar work.

To this end the invention contemplates a simple and efficient framing appliance or square having settable guide rules or members which canbe secured in any desired adjusted positions toprovide for accurately and rapidly laying out the work Without the necessity of turning or twisting the square, as is usually the case with ordinary carpenters squares.

With these ends in view the invention consists in the novel combination of elements and in the construction and arrangement of par-ts, which will be hereinafter fully described and claimed.

To enable others to understand the inveution, we have illustrated the preferred embodiment thereof in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, and in which Figure 1 is a plan view of a square constructed in accordance with the invention. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the square on the line 2 '2 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is an end view of the square. Fig. 4 is a detail plan view of a portion of the square, showing the manner of adjusting one of the guide rules beyond the plane of the rule-frame to obtain angles whereby the appliance may be converted-into an angle-rule.

Like characters denote like and corresponding parts in each of the several figures of the drawings.

The appliance includes in its construction two longitudinal members 2 and 3 and two transverse connecting members 4 and 5, and these are united at their ends to form a continuous rectangle or skeleton of open form, and these several parts may be made of any suitable length, it being understood that the parts 2 and 3 and the parts 4 and 5, respectively, are duplicates and that the last-mentioned two parts are somewhat shorter than their companions, and all of them can be marked with suitable standards ofmeasurement and the usual divisions thereof. The

' basemember or part 2 of the square is provided along its outer edge with the flange 6, which is at right angles thereto and is placed against the work and which constitutes a gage device, and the guides or markers, hereinafter described, are adjusted relatively to the rest-flange and their edges are parallel, of course, with the edges of the two main members 2 and 3, respectively. The flange 6 extends entirely along the part 2 and is made suliiciently wide as to hold the square steadily in place, and it is provided substantially midway of its length with the parallel projections 7, between which the spindle 8 is supported, and this spindle receives the grasp 9, constituting an upwardly-projecting bailshaped handle, which can be grasped by the user to shift the square along the timber, during which time the inner face of the flange 6 can be held firmly against the adjacent face of the work.

The longitudinal side members 2 and 3 and the transverse end members 4 and 5 constitute, in effect, what may be properly termed an open rectangular rule-frame, and while the end bars or members 4 and 5 of this frame are preferably rigidly joined to the ends of one of the side members 2, the other side member 3 preferably is detachably fastened at its ends to the said end members 4and 5 by means of fastening-screws 9 or equivalent fastenings. Under ordinary conditions the detach able side member 3 is joined to the end members 4 and 5 to make the complete rectangular frame, but by detaching the said member 3 the square can be placed astride of a piece of timber when necessary to measure Or mark the same in this way.

Associated with the open rectangular ruleframe are a pair or plurality of straight guiderules 10, which are provided with suitable graduations corresponding to those on the side and end members of the frame itself. The said straight guide-rules 10 are arranged in parallelism to each other and the side mem bers or rules 2 and 3 of the frame, and at their opposite ends the guide-rules 10 are provided with offset L-shaped flanges 12, fitting upon the end members 4 and 5 of the frame,whereby said guide-rules 10 will lie within the ruleframe flush with the upper and lower faces of the connected members thereof, as plainly illustrated in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

To provide for the adjustable connection of the straight guide-rules 10 with the end members i and 5 of the ruleframe, said members of the frame are provided with longitudinal slots 15, extending practically the entire length thereof and of an approximate T shape in cross-section, as plainly shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings. The walls of the longitudinal slots 15 in the end members -.t and 5 are preferably beveled to receive the correspondinglyshaped heads of the substantially T-shaped clamping-screws 16, which pass through the slots 15 and the ends of the guide-rules 10 and receive on their upper faces the winged nuts 17, which provide means for clamping the guide-rules rigid in any adjusted position.

By reason of the clamping-screw connection between the ends of the guide-rules 10 and the end members of the rule-frame the guiderules 10 may be shifted relatively to each other, as well as to the side members 2 and 3 of the rule-frame, to provide for drafting out or marking the work in the manner well understood by those skilled in the art, and in order to facilitate the removal of the clamping screws, with the guide rules attached thereto, the longitudinal slots 15 of the end members 4 and 5 are formed at their terminals with enlarged apertures 18 of a sufficient size to permit of the passage of the heads of the screws therethrough.

One of the straight guide-rules 10 is provided, preferably at opposite sides of the center thereof,with longitudinally-disposed slots 19, which permit of said guide-rule being slid out beyond one end of the rule-frame and clamped at any desired angle, so as to convert the appliance into an angle-rule. This adaptation of the tool is plainly shown in Fig. 4 of the drawings.

In using the tool it is simply necessary for properly adjusting the parts thereof to place the pendent rest-flange 6 thereof against one edge of the timber or board to be marked off, so as to obviate the possibility of the appliance moving while in use. As thus applied the square can be used not only for laying out mortises and tenons or other framework, but also as a gage for marking out the width of timber, boards, &c., which can be readily understood by those familiar with the art.

Changes in the form, proportion, size, and the minor details of construction within the scope of the appended claim may be resorted to without departing from the spirit or sacrificing any of the advantages of this invention.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is-

In a framing-square, the combination, with a main frame comprising a base member and two end members projecting in the same plane at right angles therefrom, the base member being provided on its outer edge with a restflange extending at right angles therefrom, said flange being provided substantially midway of its length with an upwardly-projecting bail-shaped handle and each end member being slotted longitudinally, of a member detachably secured to the outer ends of the end pieces beyond the slots and parallel with the base, and guide-rules detachably and adjustably secured to the end pieces, one of which is slotted longitudinally at each end, said rules lying in the same plane with the main frame.

In testimony that we claim the foregoing as our own we have hereto affixed our signatures in the presence of two witnesses.

\VILLIAM H. CRAVFORD. DOUGLAS B. CRAWFORD.

Vitnesses:

JAS. D. BOONE, WINFRDE MILLER. 

